Monster Madness enters LaSpada's new Boca Raton location

No signs. No memo. No email blast. No Facebook update. No twitter announcement. On November 2, LaSpada’s Original Hoagies quietly opened up their doors to their new Boca Raton location without telling anyone. But that didn’t mean people didn’t know.

Manager Phil Kappes, whose parents have owned and operated the three Broward locations since 1973, says that opening up a Palm Beach County store was inevitable.

“People would visit and call the other stores and ask when we would open up a place in Boca. For months [during construction] they would stop by the store to see if it was finished.”

And it was well worth the wait. Nearly double the size of its former models, the new store can sit up to 32 hoagie hounds. The three other stores sit less than half that.

While it was worth the wait, I can’t say I was patient during the process. I would frequent the Coral Springs location until the Boca store was complete. It was originally slated to open up in August, but Kappes says due to building codes, inspections, and other hold ups, the opening got pushed back three months after its original due date. While Palm Beach County admirers had to wait, Kappes doesn’t believe there were any hard feelings.

“We just opened the doors and they showed up,” he says. “We’ve had lines out the door at lunch time ever since.”

And with good reason. Kappes says customers have ventured south of the county line for the “best damn hoagies in town.” Recently voted “best sandwiches” by New Times Broward/Palm Beach for the umpteenth time, LaSpada’s lives up to their self-proclaimed description. Meat cut to order, than tossed on soft white or wheat rolls, loaded up with your choice of lettuce, tomato, onions, pickles, hot and sweet peppers and cheese, then closed with another layer of meat. Check out my love to the hoagie Gods here.

Now that Kappes and his crew have taken their hoagie creations bi-county, plans to continue opening up more stores are in the future. Possibilities include Delray, West Palm Beach, and Wellington, but definitive locations haven’t been made yet. He also says that future stores will be modeled after the Boca location. Construction for expanding the Davie store can start as early as next month.

Now solidified in Deerfield Beach culture, I have discovered the secret to Charm City Burger Company’s amazing chocolate milkshake: U-Bet chocolate syrup.

I say that only because I grew up on U-bet. Hershey’s chocolate syrup is all well and good, but my Mommy taught me right: U-bet chocolate. Or bust.

Well maybe my Mom never said “or bust,” but it still leads me to believe the guys over at Charm City got the memo my Mom sent out. Charm City has nearly a dozen different milkshakes on a daily basis, including seasonal caramel apple pie and pumpkin spice. Everyday favorites like Cinnabon and cookies ‘n cream. They’ve even got Peanut Butter and Jelly. They mix shakes with the best ice cream in town (or ever, you decide), Blue Bell. The best way to end my Charm City experience is with a classic chocolate milkshake.

After almost a year of wooing me into their burger and milkshake decadence, I’m glad that I have discovered their not-so-secret chocolate milkshake creation. If you leave the establishment without one, you’re only failing yourself.

Wanna feel them out before you fall into their greatness? Follow them on Twitter for daily Chef creations.

In South Florida, we get the luxury of exploring different ethnic foods on a daily basis. Miami-Dade gives us Little Haiti and Little Havana. Our grocery stores have isles dedicated to ingredients for meals used in other countries. Our neighbors can make a pizza that looks foreign to us, and yet, we can accept it because we are South Floridians.

But what sounds out of the ordinary – even in South Florida – is honey on pizza. Nevada native Cody Salinas – who discovered the Fat Kids Club through Twitter, is an experimental foodie when he’s not working at his day job or singing in five different choirs. Honey on pizza is a west coast thing, he says, and he discovered it after a late-night drunken feast nearly five years ago at The Blind Onion Pizza and Pub in Reno where they keep tubs of honey on the table like it’s ketchup for a burger.

Photo courtesy of Cody Salinas

This week, after getting into a debate with a co-worker about pizza toppings, he created the Candied Bacon and Caramelized Alfredo Pizza.

When he told me about his ventures, I felt proud of him. Trying new recipes is not only something I encourage, but something I preach. But part of me was sort of taken aback when I saw the recipe. Spinach? Feta Cheese? Artichoke hearts? Was Salinas creating a salad, or a pizza?

He admits that yours truly helped inspire him to create the recipe, but that it also came in part when he opened up his refrigerator.

“I don’t plan my meals much,” says Salinas, 25. “I tend to improvise with the ingredients I have available.”

But sir, it’s PIZZA!

“Pizza, in my opinion, is one of those foods that turns out okay if you don’t have a plan.”

Is it because I’m used to tradition? Is it because I’m comfortable with the way South Floridians have adapted to New York-style pizza? Is it because I think that when people put non-traditional toppings on a pizza, they call it gourmet, and I don’t like that word… gourmet?

It’s all of the above, actually, and in my attempt to break free from the norm even I am used to, I’m hoping other South Floridians will tag along and try Salinas’ recipe.

Candied Bacon and Caramelized Alfredo Pizza
Serving Size: Makes one 14″ pizza.

Alfredo Sauce
This sauce is über easy to make but if you’re in a
hurry, simply use a pre-made Alfredo sauce found in
any store.
1 Cup Heavy Cream
1 Stick unsalted butter, softened
1 Cup grated Parmigiano
½ Cup Honey

Pizza Dough
2 Cans of Pillsbury Pizza Dough (13.8 oz)
Honestly, you could make your own dough and it
would be great – but I personally love Pillsbury pre-made
pizza dough. It’s soft, fluffy, and fantastically
easy to use.

And Everything Else
1 Pound of Finely-Cut Bacon
1 ½ Cups Honey
1 Tbsp Tarragon
1 Tbsp Cayenne
1 Tbsp Parsley
1 Tbsp Garlic Powder
2 Cups Mushrooms, Stemmed and Thinly Sliced
1 ½ Cups Feta Cheese
2 Cups Fresh Spinach
½ Cup Sun Dried Tomatoes
½ Cup Pickled Artichoke Hearts, Sliced
2 Tbsp Unsalted Butter
Salt and Pepper to Taste
Olive Oil

Photo courtesy of Cody Salinas

Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

For the Alfredo sauce, add ½ cup of honey to a pot. Let it caramelize until it has become bubbly and golden brown. Add the heavy cream and butter. Stir and let it simmer for a few minutes. Add the grated cheese into the sauce and cook on medium heat until the sauce is a nice, not-too-thick consistency. Feel free to add more honey, cheese, or cream to thicken or lighten the sauce. Set aside.

Combine the two cans of pizza dough and roll out until roughly ½” thick in the center. Make the circumference of the dough thicker, preferably one inch. Hefty crusts for this pizza are necessary. Place the formed dough on a pan and set aside.

In a large pan pour just enough olive oil to cover the entire surface. Next, add the tarragon, cayenne, parsley, garlic powder, butter, a pinch of salt and a bit of freshly-ground pepper. Add the 1½ cups of honey and mix well. Cook on medium heat for three minutes until the honey begins to caramelize.

Use the excess honey/bacon drippings and pour into the Alfredo sauce, heating until the mixture until it becomes thoroughly mixed. Once the sauce is heated, scoop the Honey Alfredo onto the pizza dough. Don’t be shy about loading the stuff on. Give your dough some love.

On top of the Alfredo, add the Feta cheese and spread across the dough entirely. Atop that, place the spinach in a way that looks like a comfortable resting place for the other ingredients. Spread the “Candied” bacon across the entire pizza. Next, add the sun-dried tomatoes, mushrooms, and artichoke hearts. For good measure, add a handful of feta on top.

Place the pizza in your oven and cook for 20-25 minutes. Depending on your altitude, you may need to extend cooking time to 33 minutes. When finished, drizzle just a tiny bit of honey across the top of the pizza. Serve, and enjoy!

Photo by Rachael Joyner

The first time I went into a Primanti Bros., I squeezed into a small chair at their very snug Fort Lauderdale location. I took a friend – a Pittsburgh native who said a taste of Primanti’s was like a taste of home. So I took him for his birthday.

“I’ll have the pastrami sandwich,” I started. “But hold the slaw.”

My friend looked at me in disbelief.

“What are you DOING?!” he barked. “Get the slaw.”

“But I don’t like cole slaw,” I said.

“Trust me.”

Following the dirty look I gave him and my server, I ordered my first Primanti’s pastrami sandwich: with cole slaw, french fries, tomatoes and provolone cheese. To this day, I ponder why I even considered making such a horrible decision against it.

It’s like the sandwich you make as a kid in the cafeteria at school: you pile everything on your tray in between two pieces of bread and there you have it: a pure genius creation that regardless of what you put on it, it tastes delicious.

Primanti Bros. – the Pittsburgh sandwich shop that migrated to South Florida nearly 15 years ago – has capitalized on putting everything on their sandwiches. Really, who needs it on the side? Find out how they got to doing it that way… Wilton Manors Manager Matt Zalewski says this pastrami concoction is one of his favorites, and one of the most ordered sandwiches, falling behind only to the infamous Pitts-burger: a burger holding the place of the pastrami with the works as well. Nothing against the burger, but I’m prone to the pastrami.

Trust me – and the Pittsburgh native who told me to trust him – and don’t hold anything. Get it, as is, and enjoy it. There’s no going back… nor would you ever want to.

If you get time, take a stroll over to their new Sunrise location, set with a full bar. Visit Matt at the Wilton Manors store or stroll to their Fort Lauderdale beach location, open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.

First popcorn, then what? Do you take away their Hungry Man dinners? What did Orville Redenbacher ever do to the Sun-Sentinel that Publisher Howard Greenberg had to send out a memo on Thursday afternoon to his staff telling them microwaving popcorn was banned from the building?

Did Greenberg ever make popcorn in the alleged “hazardous” microwave? Did he think that if the microwave was dangerous – not the popcorn – that maybe it should be replaced? I am well aware of recent budget cuts, Mr. Greenberg, but your staff – the ones that are still there – may end up finding ways around your microwave discrimination and bring in stove top popcorn… Unless you plan on banning popcorn altogether…

The holidays are coming up. Can we find it in our hearts to provide our fellow Fat Kids Club members at the Sun-Sentinel with a stove top popcorn popper? This one from Target looks pretty…

If anyone has any pictures of the Sun-Sentinel hazardous popcorn, please email me so we can warn non-employees about the dangers.

Winner Mike LaMonica had a total of 31 votes (including himself) out of nearly 70 that were cast at the First Annual Great Pizza Cook-off.

With a not-so-surprising, overwhelming majority, Team Mike LaMonica took home the inaugural victory of the Great Pizza Cook-off on Tuesday night. The contest was sponsored by Worst Pizza and the Sun-Sentinel held at Anthony’s Coal Fired Pizza in Aventura.

With 31 votes, 25 t-shirts, and a “Vegetarian’s Nightmare” pizza, LaMonica not only brought the swag, he also brought 4 pounds of meat per pizza, including meatballs pepperoni, sausage, and two different kinds of cheese. The crust, while thin, was crunchy perfection.

“No vegetables were harmed in the making of this pizza,” he assured the crowd of nearly 70 pizza enthusiasts, many of whom wore LaMonica’s “Here’s the Beef” shirts he handed out early in the night.

LaMonica was one of five finalists hand-picked by Craig Agranoff (@Lapp) from Worst Pizza and Sun-Sentinel food critic John Tanasychuk More than 50 people entered the contest through the Sun-Sentinel website last month for a chance to compete.

All finalists directed chefs on toppings, amounts, and cooking times for their pizzas. While the last-minute switch-up by Anthony’s to hold the finalists from making their own pizzas, that didn’t deter their good-natured spirits, or their good pizza. The Fat Kids Club – who openly endorsed Team LaMonica – congratulates him on his spectacular victory.

Want to follow more of the over-flowing coverage of last night’s competition? Visit worstpizza.com often for continuous updates!

As children, there are three questions repeated profusely.

Are we there yet?

Do you love it so much that you would MARRY it?

And, of course….

Could you eat it every day for the rest of your life?

While the first two eventually fade, the third question sticks around. To this day, I think about that one meal that I could eat for the rest of my life. That meal, my friends, is my Grandma’s homemade macaroni and cheese.

Maybe it’s because my Grandma makes it, and she makes it with love. Maybe it’s because it didn’t come out of a box. Maybe it’s because it’s not Bobby Flay’ed with 365947 different ingredients. Whatever it is, it’s damn good and that’s all that matters.

Macaroni

1 lb (16 oz) uncooked elbow macaroni
6 qts water
2-4 tbsp kosher salt

Bring water to a boil. Add salt and macaroni. Stir. Boil rapidly 10-15 minutes uncovered. Check for tenderness with a fork. Al dente. Drain.

Sauce

4 tbsp. butter
4 tbsp. flour
2 tsp. kosher salt
4 cups milk
4 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese (maybe a little extra if you’re a cheese-a-holic like your Fat Kids Club President)

While macaroni is cooking, melt butter in saucepan. Add flour and salt. Heat until mixture bubbles. Remove from heat. Add milk gradually, return to heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Add 3 cups grated cheese and stir until blended. Add macaroni and stir, pour into greased casserole dish. Sprinkle 1 cup (or however much you’ve got left over) grated cheese on top. Bake for 20 to 30 minutes until cheese is melted. Chow.

Got something better? Tell me in a comment!

Photo by: Lindsay Moore

“We have the best burgers in South Florida.”

She told me, and I didn’t believe her. Not because she’s a bad person (far from it) or her burgers were bad (far from it), but because once you hear the same line constantly, you tend to take is less and less seriously.

“Oh really? Says who?”

First mistake…

“Says me,” Lenore Gilbert, owner of Gilbert’s 17th Street Grill in Fort Lauderdale, proudly told me as she handed me what was, in fact, one of the best cheeseburgers I’ve ever had.

It was a classic cheeseburger: American cheese, lettuce, tomato and a pickle. It reminded me of the burgers my Grandfather and I used to make every summer when I was a kid. In this day in age, too many people are busy fancying up their burgers instead of eating it the right way: simple, easy, and with as little effort as possible.

Gilbert’s has been open for eight months, and while the menu touts five different homemade soups daily and a variety of different wraps, seafood, and sandwiches, it is all about the burgers: the most simple delicious burger you may ever enjoy.

“We don’t add anything to our meat,” Bob – Lenore’s husband – told me. “It comes in, we make patties, and then it goes on the grill.”

That meat Bob mentioned is Certified Angus Beef (CAB) – the gold medal winner of the beef Olympics. Less than 8 percent of all beef can earn the CAB approval, according to the official website.

Most restaurants use a variety of different types of meat for their burgers, but rarely do restaurants have the extra expense or knowledge of Certified Angus Beef. Maybe it was because Bob and Lenore used to own Kansas City Seafood and Steakhouse a few years back, or maybe because they’ve had over 35 years of restaurant experience with owning and operating various food joints from New York and South Florida. But there isn’t a secret, really, except what Lenore says is her husband’s “KISS” factor: Keep it simple stupid.

Simple. The way my Grandfather (and I) would have intended it to be.